Thanks for taking
questions as itís hard to get guidance on boat issues. I have a 2004
Alumacraft Trophy 180 with a Honda 130 HP 4 stroke. I estimate the rigged
weight at 2400 lbs. With 3 guys and gear it is more like 3000 lbs. I have
a kicker on the back with a 6 gal tank in the splash well. The motor is
one hole above all the way down which puts the prop shaft center at 8
inches below the keel. At speed the antiventilation plate/hydrofoil runs
about 2 inches below the water. I have installed a planning hydrofoil on
the motor. I have 2 props. The original Solas 13 1/4 x 19P 3 blade which
runs 5800 RPM 35 MPH GPS and a Honda 13 1/4 x 13P 4 blade which runs 6000
RPM 35 MPH GPS. The 4 blade has a good hole shot. The 3 blade holes hot is
poor. I have tried a Stiletto 17P & 15P 4 blade and the max
speed was 35, but the max rpm was 4800 & 5200 respectively. The hole
shot was pretty good with the 15 P. I also tried a Merc Trophy 14
1/4 x 17 P 4 blade which hit 35 at 4750 RPM, but the hole shot was poor.
The boat seems to porpoise fairly easily with minimal trim. I could not
notice improvement with any prop. It porpoises at about the middle
of the range of the bolt holes for the trim pin. I am looking for a low
minimum planing speed to hold in rough water. A few extra MPH on the
top end would be nice, but is less important. What are your thoughts
on raising or lowering the motor to minimize porpoising? Do you have any
other set up suggestions or is this boat under powered for the load and
for use in rough water?

Thanks,
Ken Giesen

Ken,

Lower
the motor down and run the 4 blade. The porpoise is partly from the high
engine and partly from the slow relative speed. The basic boat weight is
very high for the horsepower.

Randy

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